26. Fletcher

We're back.

I wish we could have stayed at the lake house forever, but I know that's totally unrealistic. We got back yesterday, and today, Ronan is back at work. Turns out, Annie didn't need my help today after all, so here I am at my place doing absolutely nothing.

I'm trying really hard not to think about how many days we have until summer is over. I still can't believe my parents showed up at the house. I also thank God we got back to the house when we did, and not a minute later, because I'm pretty sure I'd have had to bleach my eyeballs, and that wouldn't have been fun.

I'm also surprised my mom hasn't been blowing up my phone, but I suspect that has a lot to do with Rhys. He seems to be able to keep my mom fairly calm, but I don't think it will last long.

A laugh jumps from me when I hear a knock on my door a moment after that thought. Okay, so not long at all. But when I go to open the door, it's not Blair, it's Bree standing there. "Hey, Fletch."

"Mom send you?" I ask with one eyebrow cocked.

She tosses her head back and laughs. "Of course. Did you really almost witness..." She shudders, and I gag.

"Yes. But never mention that again."

She laughs and holds up her hand. "Promise. Can I come in."

I move out of the way, and she walks into my place, making herself comfortable on the couch while I close the door. I join her and just wait for her to speak.

"So are you in love with him?"

Damn, Bree."I'm..." flustered as fuck. "No. It's a summer fling. It's not a big deal."

"Blair thinks she saw some pretty damn real feelings between you two. And she thinks you're acting all tough."

"I am tough," I say, but yeah, it's not convincing at all.

"I know, buddy," she says and pats my shoulder. I roll my eyes, but I can't help but laugh.

"I'm trying."

"You don't want it to end with the summer though, right?" she asks, not missing a damn thing.

"No. But it has to, Bree."

"Why? Because he's a professor at your college? That's stupid," she says bluntly, and I would have agreed, except now I know why his job means so much to him. I can't really tell her the whole story though.

It's not mine to tell.

"Bree." I look into her eyes, pleading with her to get it. "He's like us more than you know. More than I ever realized. He can't lose his job."

Her eyes widen a little, and she seems to think that over. I think she gets it without me having to spell it out, but still she huffs. "It's still stupid. If you like each other..." Her eyes bore into mine with no nonsense. "If you love each other,"—I flinch, but she doesn't back down—"you should be together."

"Since when do you believe in fairytales, Bree?"

She grins brightly at me now, settling in to lay her head on my shoulder. "Since we were rescued by the beautiful queen and her sweet king."

That's really damn hard to argue with, so I don't say anything else. I just hang out with her for a while longer before she heads out, and I go over to Ronan's house.

Anticipation and longing thrums through my veins before he opens the door to let me into his house. The home he built on nothing but determination and hard work.

God, I can't be the reason he loses this.

He pulls open the door, his smile bright, and he's back in his professor clothes with dress slacks and a black button-down shirt. But he still looks hot as all hell. I walk inside, letting him close the door behind me before I wrap my arms around his neck and pull him in for a deep kiss.

"Did you miss me?" He grins when I finally release him.

More than you'll ever know."Maybe a little." I try to play it cool, and he just laughs as he directs me into the kitchen where he's making dinner. I let myself get a little lost in the fantasy of it all as he cooks, and we talk about our day.

"My sister stopped by today."

"Really?" he asks as we sit down at the table to eat.

"Yeah." I can't help smiling because it's always good to see her. Even if she'd have busted in without telling me she was there, I'd have been really happy to see her.

"Did you have fun?"

I nod my head, pushing the food on my plate around with my fork. "She's worried about me."

"Why?" He looks across the table at me with concern and near panic. "Are you okay? What's wrong?"

I'd laugh at his reaction if it didn't make me so damn sad. Because he truly does care about me. I don't know how we got to this point and how that's true, but it is. And if it weren't for the shitty way he was abandoned and having to pull himself from the hellish upbringing, we might actually have a chance.

Maybe I could quit school.

But I quickly shake that away because I know he'd never allow that to happen. "I'm fine," I say quickly. This man may actually kill me. My heart aches, lying to him, because I'm not fine. Far from it. I want him. Desperately. But I can't have him. "Sisters worry." I put that plastic smile back on my face and play it off the best I can.

"Are you sure?" He's not buying it, but I don't think he actually wants to dig further into it either. I think we're both at the point where we know, but also... there's nothing we can do about it.

I'm not sacrificing his job, and he's not going to let me quit school.

So I guess we're just totally fucked.